Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Congratulations to Debby Rehn for finishing her first half-marathon this past weekend in Nashville!! Not only did Debby finish, she beat her goal time, finishing in 1 hour 57 minutes 25 seconds. Good job!!

As for my efforts, it isn't even particularly comfortable to walk much anymore. The baby has moved down as far as humanly possible, so there is a good bit of pressure from time to time. I will however be walking and/or doing prenatal yoga tomorrow. It's high time! In either case I'm not sure how much I'll be able to do, but it will feel good to get some exercise.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

A big congratulations to my TNT coach, Harley Johnson, for completing the Boston Marathon in 2:49:21! That's an average pace of 6 minutes 28 seconds per mile. Way to go!!

I also heard through the grapevine that some of my teammates are gearing up for their next races. It looks like one will be running Indy with Meg and me in October. A few are planning on doing the Chicago Marathon. Two of my former teammates are coaching the TNT fall team. I think they'll be great coaches. The fall team kicks off here in a few weeks. I can't wait to take my baby for early morning strolls and see the team while they train! All around, very exciting news from my little community of runners!

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

I just couldn't help myself. It was pushing 60. The sky was a beautiful blue with fluffy and lightly scattered clouds. Meg and I are both having light weeks (though admittedly, "light" means entirely different things for us). So we ran. That's right, I said we. We ran.

We ran/walked about 2.9 miles. We walked at least as much of it as we ran, and the running was not particularly fast. Following doctor's orders, I was careful and walked when I felt tired or too heavy. I have to admit, after the fact I'm feeling a bit uncomfortable, but it was worth it. Tomorrow I will do prenatal yoga and loosen my muscles back up again.

I apologize to my mother because I told her that "the last mile" a few weeks ago would be it. She worried about that mile even, and breathed a sigh of relief when it was over. To the concerned members of the public, I apologize because I know it's surprising and odd to see a woman 8 months pregnant running. I understand your confusion and concern and I assure you, I'm being careful and talking regularly with my OB.

Earlier this week I walked and did prenatal yoga. I'm still liking that combination in these final weeks. It keeps me active and maintains some muscle tone without making the muscles too tight. My doctor recommends prenatal yoga, since loose muscles make for easier delivery. Today may really have been the last running I will do; my hips really are not happy about it. Stay tuned though.

Friday, April 11, 2008

It's a really slow day at work, so I'm being rather naughty and posting to this blog. For anyone who cares, my work schedule is 100% flexible, so I'm not actually stealing "company" time. I'm not on a clock. Regardless, it feels sort of naughty.

I just saw this article on MSN and wanted to post it. When I started running in earnest, just about a year ago, I had concerns about my left knee. I had surgery on it in 1995 and was concerned that running would further tear the cartilage. I was concerned enough to talk to my general practitioner about it. She told me that many people have noisy knees and that it's no cause for concern vis-a-vis running. She said that if I start to get an ache, take some glucosamine and ice my knee. In the whole course of training for the CDC last year it never became a problem. As the article mentions, I hear a lot of people use this fear as a reason not to begin running. I'm encouraged that the article advocates responsible running and points out the dangers of sitting on the sideline.

In the world of Joanna, things are going well. I've been mixing walking, light to moderate weight lifting, and prenatal yoga. Never before have my muscles been as consistently tight as they are now (I'm at 34 weeks, for anyone who is curious). The yoga makes a noticeable impact by loosening up my legs, back, and arms. I feel like brisk walking is keeping my cardiovascular strength up somewhat, for which I'm grateful. My doctor gave me the best news of the week, though. As long as I slow down and am careful, I can still go run the occasional mile. Given what the nurse had told me at the last visit, and the fact that my ligaments are loose now, I had thought it was discouraged. There may yet be another mile or two left in this pregnancy. Now that the weather is turning toward spring, it's torture for me not to run a lap here and there.

And finally, I have some commentary on spring runners. When it's 55 or 60 degrees out, you do not need long sleeves to run. Regardless, it makes me happy to see everyone out putting in some miles, enjoying the spring weather.